Michele Bachmann's Duck and Cover Debate Strategy

Read all about it at Ripple in Stillwater.

During this campaign season, Bachmann has predictably ignored invitations to debate her two opponents, DFLer Tarryl Clark and IP candidate Bob Anderson, until public pressure from even the normally reticent mainstream media became too great. And now that we are less than a month out from the Nov. 2 election, Bachmann has cowardly agreed to a mere three debates—none of which will be before a live audience and only one of which will even be in her district.

The most glaring example of how Bachmann has abrogated her duty to represent the 6th Congressional District is the October 7 debate sponsored by the Minnesota Broadcasters Association that was scheduled to be broadcast from WCCO’s television studios—again, insulated from a living, breathing audience of her constituents.

According to Jim du Bois, president and CEO of the Minnesota Broadcasters Association, Bachmann was first contacted about the MBA debate in late August—at least five weeks ago. And then they waited. And waited. And waited.

The response? Crickets.

Further attempts to get Bachmann to commit to a debate sponsored by the organization that represents Minnesota’s broadcast community were futile.

“We never did receive a response from Congresswoman Bachmann’s office,” says du Bois. “We kept open the option of going with the debate with just two of the three candidates, but we weren’t really sure we could get it done within the timetable WCCO had.” Eventually, explains du Bois, “We waited so long that WCCO’s window went away … It came up to the wire and we lost the opportunity to debate.”

Was Bachmann too busy with her congressional duties that she couldn’t find time to even respond to the MBA, much less debate? Hardly. As it turns out, she had other priorities that superseded such menial obligations before the unwashed masses.

Bachmann was scheduled to offer her “insightful critique” at the “Reclaiming America: The Taking Back Congress Tour” sponsored by wingnut radio WWTC at Orchestra Hall that same night—a half-block away. Clearly, the choice was easy for Bachmann: spend a night debating her opponents in the most expensive congressional race in America, or spend a night hobnobbing with the likes of Hugh Hewitt, Ed Morrisey and Dennis Prager at a $225-per-VIP soiree.

Read the whole thing.